Set against the backdrop of a circus, it focuses on Littlechap, whose first major step towards improving his lot is to marry Evie, his boss' daughter. Saddled with the responsibilities of a family, he allows his growing dissatisfaction with his existence to lead him into the arms of various women - Russian Anya, German Ilse, and American Ginnie - as he searches for something better than he has, only to realize in the twilight of his life what he always had - the love of his wife - was more than enough to sustain him.